Construction material and method of construction



Nov. 8, 1932. R. HOLZ CONSTRUCTION MATERIAL AND METHOD OF CONSTRUCTION Filed May 29, 1928 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 IN VEN TOR.

Nov. 8, 1932. R. HOLZ 1,88%,8W CONSTRUCTION MATERIAL AND METHOD OF CONSTRUCTION 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed May 29, 1928 'INVENTOR.

A TTORNEY.

Patented Nov. 8, 1932 ROBERT HOLZ, OINCIIil'NATI, OHIO I CONSTRUCTION MATERIAL AND METHOD 01 CONSTRUCTION Application filed May 29,

My invention relates to construction materials and methods of construction, particularly in relation to the walls, floors, ceilings, and roofs of buildings which it is desired .to insulate as a weather protective measure and for preventing the transmission of sounds therethrough. 5

The requirements-in the building industry have undergone a decided change in the past ten to fifteen years. Up until recent years neighborly consideration demanded that apartment house tenants, for example, cease playing the piano or victrola at 10 p. 111. But with the advent of the radio, the fact that the best reception is obtainable after 11 p. m. has

proved too great'a temptation and the burden for maintaining quiet for apartment house tenants who desire to sleep has fallen upon the builder.' There has been a steadily increasing demand for better sound-proofing construction.

Architecture in the nineties (principally Mid-Victorian) and even up to fifteen years ago, tended to higher types of homes which 5 usually provided attic space above the top living rooms, and this, to a great extent, kept the home coolerin the summer and warmer in the winter. But the architecture of today with its predominance of squatty bungalows 0 and low rambling English country types, coupled with the fact that built-in refinements in the home have increased the cost of building, have tempted builders to save by eliminating waste space under the roof. Consequently there has been an ever increasing demand for insulating of the ceilings of the top living rooms to prevent the escape of heat in winter and the penetration of the suns rays in summer.

The cardinal attributes qualifying a material as an insulator for sound are practically the same for insulators for the transfer of temperature.

The demand for insulation brought a number-of new products upon the market which are being used with varying degrees of results. Some of these are being used in place of wood and metal lath as a plaster base.

As typical specimens of material used for insulating purposes, the following list is of 1928. Serial No. 281,544.

products which are now quite generally used:

inch to one inch thick board-like material, made of ground wood pulp screenings;

inch thick board-like material, made of 55 bag'asse-sugar cane refuse;

% inch thick material comprising wood fibre of paper board saturated with a bituminous pitch.

Matted hair felts, grass fibre felts, wool felt papers, and asbestos paper and boards are also used. Cork board in varying thicknesses also makes an excellent insulator.

Recently ground mineralssuch as gypsum mixed with fibres to give bulk and create air spaces, and asbestos fibres of'shorter lengths, have been used. These materials can be applied in varying thicknesses and consequently give more or less insulation as required.

I have used most of the insulating materials on the market but I find I obtain the best results with the loose or bulk mineral type of insulation material. The cost of the loose bulk mineral type of insulation is lower comre pared toother types but the cost of application is excessive and the present method of application is very inconvenient. For soundproofing it is used between the floor joists and between studs of partitions dividing apartments or rooms and it is particularly effective as it either reduces or eliminates the drum effect of floors and partitions by increas ing their mass. For temperature insulating it is used between ceiling joists and between studs of outside walls of frame buildings. The present method of application between floor joists is as follows: After the lath has been applied to the ceiling of the room underneath the boards of the sub-floor which have been left unnailed,about every fourth or fifth board when the floor is laid,-are removed and the insulating material is dumped in a raked out to an even depth between the joists, and the boards are then replaced and nailed in the sub-floor. The cost of this method of application is very expensive as it is necessary to do considerable cutting and patching wherepartitionshave been erected in order to take up and replace the loose boards.

In applying the insulation in the ceiling of the top floor where there is not sutficientroom between the ceiling joist and the roof rafters for a man to dump the material down between the joists, the lath is applied in sections to the ceiling joists and the material is shovelled or thrown up between the joists with a scoop and then raked to an even depth. By visualizing this method of application it can be readily seen that it is not only time consuming in itself, but greatly interferes with the economical application of the lath.

In applying material in both interior and exterior partitions, the partitions are lat-lied to within a foot or so of the ceiling and the material is then dumped in and the last foot of wall is filled as the remaining lathes are applied. These materials now appear on the market in shapeless paper sacks or cloth bags of economical size containing from 35 to 100 pounds each.

In building practice joist studs are spaced on either 16 inch or 24 inch centers as required by the building code which practically every State and every incorporated municipality maintains by inspection. Further in the building trades, commercial two inch framing timbers are often dressed to 1% to 1 thick, so that the problem of supplying insulating material is one which involves more or less uniform spaces within which the insulating material is retained.

It is the object of my invention to provide preformed and shaped sacks of such size as will fit within the openings between the framing timbers. For the usual type of construction which I have described I would have the bags preformed 14" to 14 in width for studding spaced on 16 inch centers, and where timbers are spaced 24 inches on centers I would have the bags 22 to 22 in width to fit between the timbers. The length and width of the bags may be varied in accordance with the type of construction required.

Referring to the drawings in which I have indicated a preferred use of my invention:

Figure 1 is a perspective View of the interior of a room with cut-away portions showing the preferred manner of applying the insulating material.

Figure 2 is a perspective view of one type of preformed bag filled with insulating material of fibrous material such as asbestos.

Figure 3 is a plan view of the bag shown in Figure 2.

Figure 4 is an end elevation of .the bag shown in Figure 2.

Figure 5 is a perspective View of the bag prior to the filling thereof with the insulating material. Referring first to the illustrations of the bag, I have shown an ordinary bag 1 shaped to suitable size with end flaps 2 which may be pasted down after the insulating material 3 has been filled into the bag. Various sizes and shapes of bags will be made in accordance with building requirements.

In Figure 1, I have shown the interior of a room with standard spaced joists 4 supporting the floor and with standard shaped bags 1A filled with insulating material fitted within the spaces between the oists. In the cutaway portion of one Wall I have shown the water pipes 5 which form irregular spaces which may be filled with narrow bags 1B. In another wall of the room I have shown standard spaced studs 6 with preformed and filled bags 1C fitting within the openings between the studs. The ceiling of the room is formed with standard spaced joists 7 between which I have shown the preformed and filled bags 1D.

Commercial 2" X 4 are often dressed to approximately 1 x 3 and 2" X 6" are dressed to 1 2; 5%. Where these are used for studs I would have the bags 3 and 5 thick. I would have the bags 48" to 54 in length but do not limit myself to any definite length as that would be governed by the convenience in handling, shipping and applying. The above mentioned thickness of my preformed bags 3 to 5 will also give two variations of thick nesses for use between floor and ceiling for both soundproofing and temperature insulation. I do not limit myself to any dimension other than those governed by the method of placing timbers in building construction.

The application of insulation packed in preformed bags can be accomplished with less labor and interference to lathing than the application of a loose, unpacked insulating material. Packing the material in a self-contained paper bag enables the use of a greater variety of insulating materials and embraces all of those of a powdered nature such as infusorial earth, which have not been successfully used due to the fact that with wood and metal laths the loss of'insulating material is too great due to sifting.

In the corner of rooms and alongside of doors and window openings the space between timbers will be less than the standard spacing; and where heating pipes, soil pipes and other plumbing pipes are concealed in the partition and floors thebags can be slit and where a somewhat'fibred material is used it will have sufficient cohesion so that each part of the aeaaere I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is z- 1. In the building construction art, the step of insulating partitions within a bullding with insulating material, which consists in inserting flexible containers filled with loose insulating material in bulk into spaces between said partitions, said containers being preformed and of such size that they will approximately fit within the openings between the partitions, and deforming said containers and material Where necessary on account of variations in size of the spaces.

2. In the building construction art, the step of preparing insulating material for insertion in spaces between the walls of a building, which consists in making flexible containers of suitable size as to fit within the particular spaces to be insulated and then filling the containers with loose insulating material in bulk.

3. Insulating material for building Walls which consists of flexible containers preformed to suitable size and filled with loose insulating material in bulk.

4. Insulating material for building walls which consists of flexible paper bags preformed to suitable size and 'filled with loose insulating material in bulk, the said bags being compressible widthwise with corresponding increase in thickness. I

rectangular cross section longitudinally, said unit, so formed, being of a size and shape whereby the unit will substantially fill the cross section of one of said wall spaces, or may be deformed to substantially fill others of said spaces varying in cross-sectional dimension from said one of said wall spaces.

ROBERT I-IQLZ.

5. An insulating unit for walls of buildings in which the walls have supporting members between which spaces are left in 6. An insulating unit for walls of buildings in which the walls have supporting a members between which spaces of rectangular cross section are left in the walls, comprising a flexible container filled with loose insulating material, said container being preformed of rectangular cross section of a size and shape whereby the unit will substantially fill the cross section of one of said wall spaces,

the walls, comprising a flexible container Y or may be deformed to substantially fill others of said spaces varying in cross-sectional dimension from said one of said wall spaces.

7. An insulating unit for walls of buildings in which the walls have supporting members between which spaces of rectangular cross section are left'in the walls, comprising a container filled with loose insulating material, said container being preformed of flexible paper folded into a tube of rectangular cross section with the ends of the tube folded into closures of the ends of the unit, whereby the unit is of substantially 

